11/09/2026
๐๐๐๐ง๐ข๐ฅ๐๐๐ | Teach Less, Pay Less: When teacher shortages turn education into an overburdened system
Not all heroes wear capes. Some carry lesson plans, mark papers late at night, stand before crowded classrooms, and show up every morning despite exhaustion. They are our teachers. But what happens when the heroes who keep our classrooms standing are left without support?
According to sources, the Department of Education (DepEd) is facing a troubling reality: zero budget for hiring new public school teachers in 2027. Its request to hire 14,274 additional teachers, requiring around โฑ4.29 billion, was left unfunded in the proposed 2027 National Expenditure Program. For teachers already struggling to keep up with overflowing classrooms and mountains of responsibilities, this is not simply a budget issue. It is a warning. ๐ผ ๐ฌ๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ซ๐๐ง๐ฎ ๐ฅ๐๐ค๐ฅ๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ ๐ง๐๐ก๐ฎ ๐ค๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐๐ช๐๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐ญ๐ฉ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐ง๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐ข๐๐ฎ ๐ค๐ฃ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ค ๐ข๐ค๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ก๐๐จ๐จ.
For years, Filipino teachers have carried more than their share of the education system. They teach overcrowded classes, prepare lessons, check papers, handle administrative work, advise student organizations, and take on responsibilities that extend far beyond the four walls of the classroom. Yet instead of giving them the support they need, the government risks leaving them to carry an even heavier load.
What happens when there are not enough teachers?
One teacher handles more students.
One classroom becomes more crowded.
One educator takes on another workload.
And one more learner receives less attention.
๐๐๐๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐ค๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ฃ๐ช๐๐จ.
Indeed, the irony is difficult to ignore. The government repeatedly declares education a priority, yet the proposed budget tells a different story. DepEd's proposed allocation for 2027 is around โฑ973.40 billion, lower than its approximately โฑ1.01 trillion allocation in 2026. Several education programs are also facing cuts. How can we expect teachers to build a stronger education system when the system itself refuses to give them enough hands to work with? We need to remind ourselves that education is not simply about buildings, computers, textbooks, or programs. At the center of every classroom is ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐๐๐งโ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ง๐จ๐ค๐ฃ ๐ฌ๐๐ค ๐๐ญ๐ฅ๐ก๐๐๐ฃ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฉ ๐จ๐๐๐ข๐จ ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ค๐จ๐จ๐๐๐ก๐, ๐๐ฃ๐๐ค๐ช๐ง๐๐๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐ง๐ฃ๐๐ง ๐ฌ๐๐ค ๐ฌ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐๐ซ๐ ๐ช๐ฅ, ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐ช๐ง๐ฃ๐จ ๐ก๐๐จ๐จ๐ค๐ฃ๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ค๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ค๐ง๐ฉ๐ช๐ฃ๐๐ฉ๐๐๐จ. Teachers are not expenses to be minimized. They are investments in our country's future.
Every unfunded teaching position represents a qualified educator who could have entered a classroom. It represents another existing teacher who may have to accommodate more learners. It represents students who may receive less guidance simply because there are not enough adults to provide it.
And this is where the budget cut becomes more than a number. It becomes the teacher who stays late because there are too many papers to check. It becomes the classroom packed beyond comfort. It becomes the learner whose raised hand goes unnoticed because one teacher is trying to attend to dozens of others. It becomes a system that expects its heroes to keep saving the day ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐๐ค๐ช๐ฉ ๐๐๐ซ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐๐ข ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐จ๐ช๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ค๐ง๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ค ๐จ๐ค.
The proposed budget is not yet final. Congress still has the power to reconsider and restore funding for teacher hiring. That opportunity must not be wasted. Lawmakers must ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐๐๐ง๐จ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ช๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐๐จ ๐ ๐๐๐ซ๐ค๐ง, ๐๐ช๐ฉ ๐๐จ ๐ ๐ง๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ค๐ฃ๐จ๐๐๐๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฎ. If the government truly believes that education is the foundation of the nation, then it must fund the people who build that foundation every single day.
๐ฝ๐๐๐๐ช๐จ๐ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฉ ๐๐ก๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐ค๐๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ง ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐จ.
Some wear IDs, carry chalk or laptops, and walk into classrooms every morning to shoulder an overburdened system. If we keep cutting the support they need, we are not just underfunding teachersโwe are failing the very future they teach.
References:
Basilio, K. C. (2026, September 7). DepEd canโt hire new teachers in 2027 due to budget cuts โ Angara. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2300401/deped-cant-hire-new-teachers-in-2027-due-to-budget-cut-angara
CEDTyClea. (2026, September 7). DepEd receives zero funding for new teachers in 2027.
BusinessWorld Online.
https://bworldonline.com/the-nation/2026/09/07/775317/deped-receives-zero-funding-for-new-teachers-in-2027/
https://tribune.net.ph/2026/09/07/reading-skills-plan-proposal-defunded
https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/2301012/angara-cant-hire-teachers-with-zero-allocation
Article by Niah Gozo
Illustration by Rayven Tresballes
Layout by Jervin Daรฑo
